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Evolution by Stages of Wild Cabbage

Wild cabbage originated in coastal regions of Western Europe and was domesticated through artificial selection beginning over 10,000 years ago. Farmers selected variants with desirable traits like enlarged leaves, leaf buds, and flowering structures to develop different cultivars like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and kale. Over many generations of selective breeding, these traits became exaggerated, resulting in the distinct vegetable types we see today. The center of domestication is uncertain but may have been in England, Sicily, or the Eastern Mediterranean based on archaeological and linguistic evidence.

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Adish Nair
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273 views10 pages

Evolution by Stages of Wild Cabbage

Wild cabbage originated in coastal regions of Western Europe and was domesticated through artificial selection beginning over 10,000 years ago. Farmers selected variants with desirable traits like enlarged leaves, leaf buds, and flowering structures to develop different cultivars like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and kale. Over many generations of selective breeding, these traits became exaggerated, resulting in the distinct vegetable types we see today. The center of domestication is uncertain but may have been in England, Sicily, or the Eastern Mediterranean based on archaeological and linguistic evidence.

Uploaded by

Adish Nair
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Evolution by

stages of wild
cabbage

Adish Nair
• Wild cabbage
• Origin
• Artificial selection

Contents • Artificial selection in wild cabbage


• References

2
Wild cabbage

Wild cabbage (Brassica oleracea) is a plant species that


includes many common foods, including cabbage,
broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts and kohlrabi.
It is a tall biennial plant that forms a rosette of large
leaves in the first year. In its second year, it uses the
stored nutrients to produce a flower spike 1 to 2 metres
(3–7 ft) tall with numerous yellow flowers. It can grow in a
wide range of conditions, but performs at its best when
located in full sun in nitrogen-rich, alkaline soil with good
drainage.
In its native habitat, it can be found growing along
coastlines on rocky sea cliffs in Western Europe.

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Origin

Due to the lack of consensus on the progenitor species,


the centre of origin for wild cabbage is uncertain. One
hypothesis is that its domesticated form originated in
England, with early cultivated forms brought to the
Mediterranean, where selection for many of the early crop
types occurred. Other studies point specifically to Sicily
(southern Italy), which had a large diversity of wild
relatives, as the centre of domestication. Most recently,
linguistic and literary evidence provided support for
domestication in the Eastern Mediterranean, where there
is a rich history of expressions related to the usage and
cultivation of B. oleracea crop types in early Greek and
Latin literature.

4
“Greek legend has it that the
cabbage sprung from where
Zeus’ sweat hit the ground.”
–N.D. Mitchell (1976)

5
Artificial selection in wild cabbage

Artificial selection is the identification by humans of desirable traits in plants and animals, and the steps taken
to enhance those traits in future generations. Artificial selection works the same way as natural selection,
except that with natural selection it is nature, not human interference, that makes these decisions.
Farmers started and continued the process of artificial selection over 10,000 years ago, selecting the desirable,
but very different, traits in the exaggerated versions of kale, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage that we see
today. Around 1600 A.D., farmers selected for variants of the plant that produced enlarged leaf buds. After
many generations, we got plants with huge heads of tightly rolled leaves (cabbage). Elsewhere, farmers
selected and bred plants with enlarged flowering structures (broccoli and cauliflower). The broccoli and
cauliflower we eat are simply flower buds that have yet to flower. We have kale (believed to be one of the
closest variety of wild cabbage) due to the diligence of farmers selectively breeding plants for large leaves.

6
7
The above image shows how various
parts of the original wild cabbage
plant were selectively bred to form
new plants (cultivars)
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References

Click on the links below for sites used as references

• We've Been Genetically Altering Plants for Thousands of Years, extension.illinois.edu


• Brassica oleracea, en.wikipedia.org
• The Evolutionary History of Wild, Domesticated, and Feral Brassica oleracea
(Brassicaceae), academic.oup.com
• Artificial Selection, nationalgeographic.org
• Brassica oleracea - North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox,
plants.ces.ncsu.edu
• Images from Google (various sources)

9
Adish Nair
Roll no. :20
Class : X-H

Thank you
10

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